The Great Eastern Highway
by AndreeaRaducan
Summary: Winding, dark, and twisted. The case and the road go hand in hand. Jennifer Jareau experiences that first hand. But within two days, the case is no longer a priority. Rated T for themes. *HIATUS*
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I know this scenario is highly unlikely, but it's fic, we can do what we want. Slightly crack since it is set in my hometown, but still a serious story. Hope you like it!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or any of its affiliates and characters. All places, companies, and organisations mentioned in this story are real.**

* * *

"This case is going to be... different"

As soon as the words had left her unit chief's mouth, Jennifer Jareau felt her heart sink. Different usually meant long, arduous, and at least a week away from her family.

Standing around the table in the briefing room, she fixed her gaze on the screen in front of her. On it were photos of small children, most likely no older than Henry. But something was familiar about them...

"The San Diego child sex trafficking case has reopened... but now it has crossed international waters," Hotch said grimly. "We normally wouldn't be called in, but because we worked the original case, we've been asked to join the task force"

"So we're heading back to San Diego," Morgan sighed.

Hotch shook his head slowly. "No... we're travelling overseas... hence why this is different... a case with the same victimology and MO has turned up in Perth, Western Australia. So we will be travelling there to assist"

JJ rose her eyebrows; Australia was at least a day's travel from DC. Not to mention they were going for a second attempt at solving a case that had gone cold. She knew that would constitute being away from her family for at least two weeks.

"The case in Perth has two separate areas we will need to work in. The city itself, and a small town in the Wheatbelt district, called Merredin. It's about a three hour journey by road from Perth, and we will need to split time between them," Hotch added. "We're taking the jet to LA. We can go over the case on the way, and we should be ready to go by the time we touch down in Perth. Go home, pack for roughly two weeks, and meet at the airstrip in two hours. Garcia, you will be coming with us, as the time difference will only impede when we need to get in touch with you"

Nodding, the team turned and filed out of the room. JJ let out a heavy sigh.

It looked like the boys were Will's responsibility for the next two weeks.

* * *

"Australia?"

JJ nodded as she packed her toiletry bag and mentally checked off everything she needed. "I know. It's weird, but it's a case we've worked before, and they need our help. I'll call you as often as I can and let you know what's going on"

Smiling, Will pulled his wife into a tight hug. "We'll miss you"

JJ smiled, relaxing into his hold. "I'll miss you too"

"Mom, we have to say goodbye!" came Henry's exuberant shout as he ran into the room, 18 month old Michael toddling behind him on chubby legs.

Letting go of Will, JJ knelt down, opening her arms to her son as he ran into her embrace.

"Oh buddy, nice hug! I'll miss you, but I'll be back before you know it. You're gonna be a good boy and help your dad out aren't you?"

Henry nodded, beaming at his mother.

"I promise," he said happily, stepping aside as Michael tried to climb onto JJ for a cuddle.

"Hey sweet boy," JJ cooed, wrapping her toddler in a tight cuddle as he squealed and laughed. "You better be a good boy as well. No explosive poop, ok?"

Henry giggled as Michael planted a slobbery kiss on his mother's cheek.

"Thanks bud," JJ laughed, letting go of Michael and standing up. Grabbing her suitcase, she pulled it off of the bed, slinging her bag over her shoulder as she did.

"Let's go wave bye to your momma," Will said, ushering the boys out of the room as he followed JJ.

It didn't feel like a long enough goodbye as JJ hugged and kissed each of her boys again before getting into the car. She wished she didn't have to travel so far, for so long, but she had a job to do.

And get it done, she would.

* * *

" _Cabin crew to landing positions"_

Over twenty four hours later, and they had finally reached their final destination. The Australian accents were awash around them, and JJ could already feel jet lag setting in. It was approaching six am in Perth, but to JJ, it was still DC time.

She turned, looking out the window as the ground grew closer and closer to them. They were passing roads, already filled with morning commuter traffic, building after building, and then suddenly it all stopped, the ground closer than ever.

With a hard touch down, the plane landed on the runway, the engines roaring to life as it slowed down to crawling before turning off the runway about two thirds of the way down. JJ rubbed her eyes; she really needed a shower and some sleep.

Looking over to her left, she smirked again at Hotch. It was strange to see him in casual clothes. She had known the man long enough to expect him to fly all the way to Australia in a suit.

Clearly not.

" _Ladies and gentleman, welcome to Perth. Local time is four minutes to six in the morning, the weather is clear with an expected high of twenty five degrees. We hope you have enjoyed your flight today, and that you look forward to enjoying the beautiful day ahead. Thank you for flying Qantas, and we hope to see you on board again soon"_

"Isn't twenty five degrees cold?" JJ muttered to Spencer, who was sitting to her left.

"Celsius, JJ. It's about eighty degrees Fahrenheit," Spencer replied without hesitation.

"Oh, of course," JJ yawned as the plane rumbled along the taxiway to the terminal. "I forgot"

"You need sleep," Spencer chuckled.

"Tell me about it," JJ mumbled.

An hour later, they had disembarked, cleared security, and collected their bags. Rejoining each other in the terminal hall, JJ was glad to see she wasn't the only fighting to stay awake.

"When we get to the hotel, take some time to freshen up and grab a few hours sleep. The commissioner has asked us to be at the Australian Federal Police office in the city by one this afternoon. We'll meet in the lobby at quarter past twelve. Make sure your phones are switched to Australian time," Hotch instructed.

And with that, they walked out of the terminal towards the waiting cars.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I promise these chapters will get longer.**

 **If you want a visual reference for where they are, I can trace the road on a map. Let me know.**

* * *

"Welcome to Perth. Smooth journey?" were the commissioner's first words as the BAU walked into the Murray Street office of the Australian Federal Police.

"Long, but uneventful," Hotch replied, holding out his hand. "Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner. These are SSA's Derek Morgan, David Rossi, Dr Spencer Reid, Jennifer Jareau, Kate Callahan, and Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia"

"Peter Chamberlain. Nice to meet you all. I apologise for asking you all here so soon after you arrived, I'm sure the jetlag is killer, but we really needed to get a leg up on the case right away. You've been briefed?" the commissioner said warmly, shaking hands with each of the team in turn.

"We have. I understand it's going to involve splitting time between here and Merredin?" Hotch queried.

Peter nodded. "Preferably, we want to send two of you out to Merredin to run point with our base there. We need some of you who have dealt with this before to pass on information and help with insight"

Hotch looked around at the team. "I think JJ and Morgan can run point, if that's ok with them?"

JJ looked at Morgan, shrugging before nodding at her boss. "Doesn't bother me"

Peter nodded with a smile. "We'll get you a vehicle. We would send an escort, but Merredin isn't hard to find. All you have to do is follow the Great Eastern Highway. And we drive on the left in this country," he teased, motioning for them to follow. Morgan turned to JJ, grinning as they followed him into the next room.

* * *

Before long, they were on their way, with a quick stop back at the hotel to grab their bags. The GPS guided them seamlessly along the inner city stretch of the highway, through the suburbs of Victoria Park and Belmont, through the Guildford Bypass, and onto the official stretch of the Great Eastern Highway that would take them all the way to Merredin.

"Did the GPS actually just tell you to turn left in 290 kilometres?" JJ laughed as they passed through Mundaring and officially left all traffic signals behind.

Morgan laughed. "Yep. She's specific. Hey, I'll give Perth some credit... it's not as hard to drive here as I thought it would be"

"Compared to gridlock in DC? Yeah, it's a dream," JJ chuckled, settling back in her seat. "It's so weird sitting on this side and not driving"

Morgan grinned, fixing his eyes on the highway ahead of him as they settled in for the long drive.

Half an hour later, they were approaching the turnoff for Wundowie when Morgan looked over at JJ once more. She had been oddly silent, choosing to rest against the window and watch the beautiful Australian bushland go racing by.

"JJ, is everything ok with you?" he asked softly. "You just seem quiet today"

"I'm really tired," JJ replied truthfully. "Have been for weeks"

"Michael not sleeping well again?" Morgan asked knowingly. The youngest LaMontagne's sleeping patterns had been the cause of much stress for his colleague in the last few months, and it was no secret that JJ relished in a full night's sleep when they were away on a case.

"He wakes up screaming almost every night and won't settle unless I go to him. I feel kind of bad that Will has to deal with it for the next two weeks or so... but I kind of don't at the same time," JJ admitted, a look of guilt crossing her face.

"Don't feel guilty for admitting you'll enjoy being able to sleep," Morgan said gently. "You need proper rest to look after your boys, and surely by the time you go home, you'll feel refreshed and ready to handle it again"

JJ shrugged. "I love him dearly, and I would do anything for him... but my god, I just need to sleep"

"Well we have about three hours driving. Try and get some shuteye now, and I'll wake you up when we stop," Morgan offered.

"Thanks Derek," JJ mumbled, resting her head against the window and closing her eyes.

Before long, she was fast asleep, the world rushing by her in quiet elegance as Merredin grew closer and closer.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm actually thinking of doing a day trip to Merredin soon to do a bit of looking around. I have been to Merredin before but it was about 14 years ago and if I recall correctly, we never actually stopped. My sister was a toddler, we were doing the hard slog 7 hour drive to Kalgoorlie, and I think my dad just wanted to get there before he killed someone. The other time I have been to Merredin was on the Prospector rail service. We never disembarked, but ten minutes after leaving Merredin, the train stopped. In the middle of the night. In the middle of freaking nowhere (go look at a map of WA, pull up Google Images, and follow the Great Eastern Highway). Some stubborn cows had wandered onto the tracks. Fun times.**

 **Also, if you haven't guessed, I'm slightly fascinated by our highways here. They play such a vital role to Perth since we are so isolated, but I'm especially fascinated with Great Eastern, and I honestly could not tell you exactly why. Oh well.**

 **This story won't be very case focused, hope that's ok.**

* * *

Merredin proved to be dusty. Dusty and red.

And small.

"I hate small towns," JJ grumbled as she followed Morgan to the front door of the police station. It was nothing like the beautiful high rise building in the center of Perth City. It was a small, dingy looking building that had clearly at some point been a house.

"Chin up JJ. Australia's a beautiful country. Did you ever think you'd get to come?" Morgan chirped, pulling open the door and walking over the threshold.

"No," JJ shrugged. "I guess it's not so bad when you look at it that way"

Their feet thudded loudly against the old floorboards, the floors creaking with every step as they walked down a long hallway towards the main room at the end. As they approached the end of the hall, a burly officer stepped into their path.

"G'day. Senior Sergeant Robert Hillier. Call me Rob," he said with a grin, extending his hand. "You guys look too clean to be from out here. You those feds they were sending from Perth?"

Morgan nodded, shaking the man's hand. "Special Agent Derek Morgan. This is Special Agent Jennifer Jareau"

"Pleasure. Now, you'll have to forgive the lodgings we've arranged, I hope you weren't expecting the Hilton. We're pretty much the arsehole end of the earth out here," Rob replied, beckoning them through. JJ sniggered; she could get used to the Australian slang.

"I'll have someone show you to the motel, and then I'll get you up to speed on what we're dealing with out here"

* * *

Hours later, night had fallen. Merredin proved to be surprisingly cold at night, and JJ had found herself wearing a second layer of sleeves as they worked into the night.

The first hour had been spent examining every inch of the original cases in San Diego and matching them to the details of both the Perth and Merredin cases to confirm that they were well and truly dealing with the same people.

They had deduced that all victims but one had vanished from Perth. All had been sold to an unknown buyer, as was typical of this particular trafficking ring. And all of them had turned up dead a week later, two of them on the outskirts of Merredin.

But whoever was responsible had slipped up. The last victim had disappeared from Merredin, and it was such a small town that JJ and Morgan knew they would find the clue they needed before too long. Someone had to have seen who was responsible.

It was almost midnight when JJ's phone rang, the screen lighting up with Hotch's name.

"Hey Hotch," JJ answered immediately.

" _JJ, we've had a major breakthrough already. We need one of you to come back to Perth, even if it's just for a day. We need an extra set of eyes from someone who knows the San Diego case inside out, and I know you had time to go over it while you were on maternity leave. I also think Morgan would be more comfortable staying out there on his own than you would"_

"When do you need me back by?" JJ asked, perking up. After fleshing out all the details, they were getting nowhere with the Merredin file. JJ had wondered how it was possible to feel so disheartened on the very first day of working on it. Maybe reconvening with the Perth based team and getting the new information would give them the push they needed to crack the case in Merredin and get home sooner rather than later.

" _I need you in the hotel lobby ready to go by half past seven. We'll fill you in when you get here"_

She had to be back in just under eight hours. That would be interesting.

"Alright, I'll be there as soon as I can," JJ replied before hanging up. Looking up at Morgan, Rob, and the other cops who had joined them, she let out a heavy breath.

"Hotch wants me back in Perth and ready to go over the new information," she explained. "But I'm going to have to drive through the night"

Rob shook his head. "The train, _The Prospector,_ stops here every day around ten in the morning. You'd be in Perth by early tomorrow afternoon"

"No, he needs me there by half past seven," JJ sighed. "I'll have to drive"

"We haven't even been here twelve hours, why's he calling you back?" Morgan asked.

"Big breakthrough. They needed either you or me to head back, and he just asked me. Must be big or he would've just relayed everything over the phone," JJ explained.

"Ok. Take the car, no doubt he'll have you back here by tomorrow night or the day after. I'll manage on foot or hitching a ride," Morgan chuckled.

"No worries mate," Andrew, one of the younger cops, nodded.

Rising from her seat, JJ gathered up her notes and other belongings. As Morgan pressed the keys into her hand, Rob stood up.

"Do you know the way?" he asked. JJ shrugged.

"Vaguely"

"Well your motel is the next street over. Follow Barrack Street to the end when you leave, and you'll hit Nungarin Road, it loops straight out to the highway. Turn right onto Great Eastern and follow it all the way back to Perth," Rob said.

"Ok"

"Be seriously careful out there though," Rob warned. "Most of us Aussies hate driving the highway in the day. At night, there's a higher risk of hitting a roo. If you're feeling nervy, don't be afraid to go under the speed limit, and always, always, _always_ drive it with the high beam headlights. Some of the bends between Northam and Perth come up really fast in the dark and if you're not high beaming, you'll run off the road"

"Duly noted," JJ replied, draping her coat over her arms. "A roo is a kangaroo, right?"

Andrew nodded. "And trust me, you don't wanna hit one, especially going 110 kays"

Nodding, JJ made to leave, walking quickly and quietly to the door with Morgan at her side.

"Call me when you get to Perth, I don't care what time it is," he said gently, giving her a quick hug. "I know it sounds like they're trying to scare you, but they're not, it's a high risk country road"

"I'll take extra care I promise, and I will call you when I arrive. Get some rest and then keep going tomorrow, ok? We have to end this," JJ said forcefully.

"We will. Now go, before Hotch calls and asks where the hell you are," Morgan pushed. JJ chuckled, walking over to the car and getting in straight away.

Before long, Morgan was watching her tail lights disappear around the corner at the end of the street.

Now, all he could do was wait.

* * *

The road was darker than JJ had ever imagined it could be. She was tired, but not tired enough to sleep. She was used to functioning on no sleep, and thankfully, that would help while navigating the treacherous rural highway.

Her hands gripped the steering wheel tightly, the high beam lights heavily illuminating the road before her. She had no spatial awareness, no idea of what was around her. All she did was follow the road, the white lines before her paving her path back to civilisation.

She had been driving for over an hour and had just passed through a small town called Cunderdin. The highway was winding tighter and tighter, and tall trees seemed to tower on either side of the road from what she could see within her headlights.

Bright blue lights coming from the bend up ahead told her that a road train was coming in the opposite direction. Dipping the lights down so she wouldn't dazzle the driver, she slowed down slightly as the turn approached.

The road train came around, passing quickly with a loud whoosh past her vehicle. Just as she was preparing to turn her high beams back up, she caught a glimpse of something to the right.

Gasping, she swerved, barely having time to register what it even was before it shot out towards her. Halfway through the bend, she felt the car leave the road, the gravel flying up and hitting the underside with sounds akin to gunfire. She was already screaming as it started to roll down the embankment, the windows shattering as it toppled down to the ground below.

With a loud crunch of metal on concrete, the car came to a sudden stop in the ditch at the edge of the road.

And as if the world wasn't black enough already, JJ faded into nothingness.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Here's the next chapter! I'm hoping to slip a bit of history in here from time to time.**

* * *

The world around her was completely black, yet somehow, JJ knew she had opened her eyes. She couldn't make sense of where she was.

She needed light.

She moved her head slightly, not really aware of what had happened even as the seatbelt cut harshly into her neck. Her whole body ached, and she could taste blood in her mouth.

"Morgan," she mumbled, blindly reaching out to her left. Her arm felt like lead, and with no strength or energy to hold it up, she felt it drop like a rock, hanging aimlessly above her head.

Was she upside down?

Deciding through much mental fog that there was only one way to find out, she fumbled around for the seatbelt buckle. There was water running somewhere near her, and she hoped she wasn't about to land in it if she was right about her current position.

Clicking the button, the seatbelt retracted, instantly sending her crashing down onto the roof of the car. She cried out, clutching her chest as she rolled towards where she thought the windscreen was. There was broken glass jabbing her from every angle, but a quick fumble in front of her told her that the windscreen had shattered.

Every inch of her body screamed in protest as she did it, but somehow she managed to wiggle her way out through the window. The sound of water was louder now... somewhere above her?

Straightening up, she almost passed out when her head hit something incredibly hard. Stars seemed to swim in front of her eyes as she folded to the ground with a whimper of pain.

She couldn't remember the last town she had passed through. Had she gone as far as Northam? She couldn't remember at all.

The last thing she remembered was passing through a town. After that, it was a big black blur. Morgan had been driving.

Had he?

Collapsing even further forward, she didn't even flinch when she ended up sliding into some very potent feeling sludge. The smell didn't even register as she pushed herself forward on shaking limbs, keeping her head low to avoid hitting whatever she'd hit before; her skull was still pounding from the impact earlier.

She would get help. She would go and get help.

It was so dark that she couldn't see, but she kept working her way through the scrubland in her sopping wet clothes. She was freezing, foggy, and completely incoherent.

She just knew she had to get help.

But only a few steps later, after a few shaky attempts to get to her feet that were met with pain and no success, she collapsed to the ground again, surrounded by the dried out grass as her eyes drifted closed again.

This was better.

* * *

Morgan's phone blared into action shortly before seven, making him bolt upright from his sleep as he reached out to grab it.

Seeing Hotch's caller ID, he yawned, pressing the phone to his ear.

"Hey Hotch," he said tiredly, rubbing his eyes as he threw the covers back and made to get up.

" _Where the hell is JJ?"_

Morgan frowned, fighting through the sleep fog as he peered at the clock on the nightstand. "She left here at midnight, she should've been there by now"

" _I know that, but she's not. I called the Police Headquarters, I called up to her room, I checked in with the others, nothing. Her phone isn't taking calls either, there's no way she's still in a no service zone, right?"_

Rising up, Morgan swallowed thickly. "No, Hotch, I'm telling you, I watched her leave. I'll even go and check her room right now to make sure she actually left the motel, but I swear, she should've been back in Perth by about four o'clock this morning"

" _Alright. I'll give her another hour, we'll keep working on the case, if she doesn't show up, we start finding out where the hell she went"_

He hung up seconds later, leaving Morgan to wonder what on earth was going on. How did JJ just vanish?

Leaping into action, he grabbed a shirt, pulling it over his head as he practically ran to his door. He wrenched it open, heading across the balcony to the room he knew was JJ's. He immediately knocked forcefully on the door, hoping beyond hope that JJ was inside. Even though he knew Hotch would be royally pissed if she was, he would rather know she was safe.

"JJ! If you're in there, I need you to tell me!" he called, moving towards the window to try and get a glimpse through the curtain.

"Do you need something?" came a voice behind him.

"Yes," Morgan replied, whirling around to find a large middle aged lady pushing a cleaning cart. "I need to get into this room. My colleague... no-one knows where she is, I need to see if she's in there"

The lady cocked an eyebrow. "How do I know you're not a rapist?"

Morgan was taken aback at the bold statement. "Look, I can go back and get my identification badge from the FBI"

The woman shook her head. "Don't mean nothing. I'll open the door, but I'm standing right here. If you do anything fishy, I'm calling the cops"

Nodding, Morgan stepped back to allow the woman to open the door. The second she had unlocked it, he barrelled through it, only to find the bed made and the room completely empty.

"JJ?" he called, opening the bathroom door. Empty.

His heart pounded in his chest as he stood in the middle of the room, wondering what he was going to do next.

Exactly what Hotch had told him.

Give her an hour. Then start worrying.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I'm going to Northam again on Saturday, I'm so excited!**

* * *

The heat on the back of her neck was unbelievable as she cracked her eyes open to the light of day. Her mouth was so dry she couldn't feel her tongue, and her entire body was still screaming with pain. Sweat drenched her entire body, and she was sure she was lying on the surface of the sun.

She couldn't remember anything. Why was she lying here, face down in the grass under a blazing sun? With her jacket on of all things.

Struggling with shaking arms, she struggled out of her jacket, casting it aside and breathing a sigh of relief when she felt instantly cooler. The next step was to get up somehow, but judging by how weak she felt, she wasn't sure if that was going to happen.

Groaning, she lifted her head just enough to get her face out of the dirt. Her neck was killing her, and her head was pounding. She licked her lips, but it did nothing; her tongue felt as large and as dry as a tennis ball. A slight taste of blood reached her senses, telling her something had gone seriously wrong if she was injured.

Pushing onto her hands, a scream tried to escape as agonising pain shot up from her right wrist. Her throat was so dry that no sound made it out, but she grimaced, biting down on her lip as she transferred her weight over to her left hand. She dragged herself up slowly, carefully working her way up to her feet.

As soon as she took a step, her entire body folded as she crumpled back to the grass. Her hands automatically went out to catch her, and as they hit the ground, she folded, writhing in pain as she clutched her clearly broken wrist with her good hand.

She let out a frustrated sigh, immediately getting back to her feet.

'Stay upright, Jareau,' she mentally told herself, willing her legs to stop shaking for five minutes so she could walk over to the shady patch of trees she had spotted on the far side of the field.

Turning slightly, she looked behind her.

More fields.

She remembered being on the highway during the night.

And she was starting to remember losing control of the car.

How had she gotten so far from the road?

Shaking her head and ignoring the pain it caused in her neck, she slowly shuffled through the grass over to the shade, hoping to find a reprieve from the sun and start to gather herself back together. She had pain all over, and hunger pangs were starting to kick in.

As she finally collapsed against the tree grimacing in pain, she took a few deep breaths to remind herself to stay calm.

The BAU would find her. They always found who they were looking for.

* * *

" _No JJ. Morgan, I need you to start trying to piece together what happened when JJ left Merredin, maybe there's a lead somewhere in there. Don't abandon the case though. We need to work them concurrently"_

"We can handle the case for now," Rob interjected. "You fellas find your agent. We'll get your insight if we feel like we're losing a grip on the end"

" _We were sent here to work alongside you-"_

"But now you have a missing agent somewhere between Perth and Merredin. I'm telling you, finding her is now your priority. We'll do the double duty, you guys focus on finding her alive and well," Rob said assuredly.

"Rob?" came the voice of young Andrew as he walked into the room.

"What is it?" Rob asked, looking up from the phone.

"Cunderdin Police have just called in an accident on the highway, about twenty minutes west of the town," Andrew said carefully, looking nervously towards Morgan. "The vehicle is registered to the WA Police Headquarters in Perth"

Morgan's stomach dropped. "That's the vehicle we came out here in"

Andrew nodded. "I know. The problem is... there's no-one at the crash scene"

Morgan felt like ice had just entered his lungs.

"Take Agent Morgan and go. I'll keep in touch with the agents in Perth," Rob instructed immediately, waving the two men out of the room.

Morgan made no hesitation. He was already heading for the car.

* * *

When they pulled up to the crash site just over an hour later, Morgan was surprised to find the highway still wide open to traffic.

"Can't they tape it off?" he asked as Andrew parked the car in the gravel at the side of the road.

"This highway is the only link between the Goldfields and Perth. The trucks rely on it. Without trucks, Australia stops. We can't close this section of the highway," Andrew replied as they got out of the car.

Checking for oncoming traffic, they crossed the highway to join the crash scene investigators who were already combing over the vehicle.

"Andrew. Good to see you. Who's this?" one of the men asked.

"Derek Morgan. He's from the FBI, they're here to work on a case with us in Merredin. The agent driving this vehicle is one of his colleagues," Andrew explained.

Morgan wordlessly walked over to examine the car. It was on its roof, the front end crumpled into the unrelenting steel pipe of the Goldfields Pipeline. The damage to the car was far worse than to the pipeline, a testament to its 100 years of survival.

"No sign of the agent. We're combing the nearby field, but judging by the state of the vehicle, they couldn't have gone far," the CSI told Andrew.

"Good. Keep looking"

Kneeling down, Morgan looked in through the broken windows, seeing nothing more than broken glass and the packages from the snacks they'd purchased before the drive the previous day.

Among it however, he spotted something out of place.

JJ's phone.

Reaching in, he immediately grabbed it. The screen was shattered, but maybe, just maybe it would still work.

"You shouldn't be touching that," one of the CSI's said gruffly.

"It's my colleague's phone, it's going back to our analyst for information," Morgan replied sternly. He knew JJ wouldn't trust anyone other than the BAU to comb through her phone, and he wanted to get it safely into Garcia's hands.

Maybe, Garcia would be able to find out where the phone had last bounced off a tower. With that information, they would be able to estimate the time of the crash. And maybe, that would help them towards finding out where the hell JJ was.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Wrote this literally in ten minutes. Sorry if it's rubbish.**

* * *

Night was freezing.

Her injuries were making her drowsy, and she was so thirsty that she was certain she could see an ice cold pitcher of lemonade sitting just a few feet away.

Slumped against the tree she had struggled her way over to, JJ was hoping and praying her team were out there, looking for her. She had left her jacket out in the middle of the field and hadn't had the energy to go and get it. The result had been that she had to shiver her way through the night, while simultaneously dying for a glass of water.

Rolling her weight over to her good side, she shakily pushed herself up. Her legs felt like dead weights beneath her, and the second she was upright the entire field started spinning, but she stood her ground. She was determined to get back to the highway, back to her vehicle, and hopefully, that would mean getting back to safety.

She staggered a few feet before falling to the ground again under another small cluster of wiry, barren trees.

Before she could even register that she was lying down again, she realised there was moisture on her face where it hadn't been a moment ago.

Lifting her face enough to see the ground below her, her heart practically flew when she saw the sun dancing off of a tiny puddle of stagnant water.

Just enough to wet her mouth, she reasoned. Everything she had ever learned was telling her not to touch it. But the overriding need for a drink was winning over every other instinct in her body.

Pursing her lips, she put her face down towards the water and took in a mouthful. It didn't taste right, and it was somewhat gritty, but she was so thirsty she found she didn't care.

Soon, the puddle was drained, and she was lying on her back beneath the trees, the sun beating down between the twiggy branches onto her already heated face. The water had helped. She felt less foggy than before, and wondered if maybe, just maybe, she had a chance of getting back to the highway.

* * *

"Ok," Garcia mused, JJ's phone sitting beside her as she ran through the usage scripts and information she had managed to find within the phone company's database. Hotch and Garcia had joined Morgan in Merredin, leaving the others in Perth to run point on the case they had been called to work on. "JJ's phone left the Merredin tower shortly after midnight... the next major bounce was Cunderdin, just over an hour later. The crash wasn't called in until six am. How far out did the crash happen?"

"Fifteen, twenty minutes," Morgan shrugged.

"So that leaves about a four and a half hour window. JJ could be anywhere," Garcia sighed.

"Assuming she's injured, which judging by the state of the car, she is, she can't have gone that far. Wherever she is, we just can't see her from the road, which means we should widen the search to the area extending north and south of the highway," Hotch replied.

"Why would she leave the crash scene, Hotch?" Morgan asked irritably.

"I don't know. That's my biggest proof that she's injured though. JJ knows to stay put so people can find her. Likely she was disoriented and confused in the crash, and being out there in the dark didn't help," Hotch explained. "We'll widen the search. Garcia, see if you can get _anything_ else from her phone. See if she tried to call for help, if she was still in service when the crash happened"

"On it sir," Garcia said quickly, her fingers tapping away with lightning speed.

Morgan and Hotch turned away, walking towards the room they had been allocated for their search operation.

"I should've gone instead," Morgan mumbled.

"Then we would probably be looking for you," Hotch reasoned. "Morgan, this isn't your fault. We're going to find her. The landscape out here is as flat and uninterrupted as it comes. Someone just has to stand on the right hill and we'll find her"

* * *

By nightfall, JJ was almost one hundred percent sure she was going to die. And not even in the melodramatic sense.

Clearly, she should have listened to her survival knowledge as far as the water was concerned, because for the last two hours, she had been crippled with the worst stomach cramps she had ever experienced in her life. That had been quickly followed by violent vomiting, so violent that JJ was positive her stomach was trying to eject itself through her mouth. And then, as if that couldn't be topped, her intestines had decided it was their turn to try and rid themselves of whatever was making her sick, and she had nearly soiled her jeans.

The vomiting was making her dehydration worse, and she now had horrific sunburn across the back of her shoulders, her neck, and her chest. Her face had been somewhat spared, but she knew within a day or two it would be just as bad. Her lips were cracked, her eyes were dry and watery, and she hadn't passed any urine in at least eight hours.

Her short stint of fervour after the ghastly drink of water had led her to try and walk in the direction she thought the highway was. That had resulted in her lying beneath a prickly shrub when the cramps attacked, and she was no closer to getting back.

Feeling another wave, JJ groaned, rolling awkwardly over onto her side until she was propped up on her elbow. With a horrible lurch, she leaned forward as another torrent of watery stomach contents gushed from her mouth to cover the ground before her.

Her eyes remained closed as she collapsed back to the ground, not caring what got all over her anymore.

Either she was going to die from dehydration, or she was going to die from the water.

She hoped the team found her soon.

She couldn't imagine that a body left in the Australian sun would be a very welcome sight.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: The aforementioned case will only be background from now on. I never actually gave it much thought, only enough ground to get them to Australia. I'm terrible with cases, I much prefer the personal side of things.**

* * *

" _What do you mean JJ's missing?"_

Hotch grimaced; he hadn't wanted to make this call, knowing it would leave Will in a state of panic thousands of miles away. But he knew that he had to, because he didn't want the first call to be the one where he had to inform Will his wife wasn't coming home.

"She was in an accident on the highway, in the middle of the night. By the time we knew what had happened and reached the scene, she was gone. I promise you Will, we're doing everything we can to find her," he explained as calmly as he could manage.

" _Please, Hotch, just bring her home. I don't care how it happened, or why JJ was out there by herself at that time of night... just bring her home"_

"We will," Hotch said thickly. His chest tightened; he hoped he hadn't just made an impossible promise.

Ending the call, he took a deep breath, pinching his nose.

JJ had already spent two days and two nights out on her own in the Australian outback and they were no closer to pinpointing where she could be. They were well into the third day, and the temperature was expected hit a soaring record.

The local police had already told them to expect to find JJ's body, that people rarely survived in the outback with no supplies for longer than a day.

But Hotch was adamant. JJ was strong. They would find her. And they would bring her home.

No matter what it took.

* * *

Crouched over by the twisted trunk of what used to be a tree, JJ clutched the crumbly surface for support as she dry heaved with a horrible feeling of unrelenting force. There was nothing in her stomach to throw up, yet she was still vomiting. The feeling was awful, like her stomach was trying to eject itself from her body, and she was sure there were tears in her throat by now. The nausea and cramps had not yet abated, and two watery bowel movements that had almost been accidents told her that the water bug was not done wreaking absolute havoc on her digestive tract.

Nothing was making sense anymore. She had no energy, and she had no idea how she was still alive. The sun was beating down on her already badly burnt skin, and she could feel blisters beginning to form on her shoulders.

For the most part, she had kept her face partially shielded beneath a wiry little shrub, but it hadn't done a great deal; she could tell the skin on her face was burnt.

Collapsing onto her back, she closed her eyes and tried to calm her racing mind. She was scared... but she was also so thirsty and so unwell that she couldn't even remember why she was scared.

Despite the heat, she was freezing. Her entire body shook terribly even in the sun, and she couldn't decide what she wanted more; a blanket or a cold bath.

"Where are you?" she breathed, her eyes barely open as she looked up at the sky. Brilliantly blue, the sun seemed to be growing larger by the second.

Where was her team? It had been five days.

Wait, was it five? Or had it only been one?

JJ had no idea of anything anymore.

Feeling something moving beneath her neck, she sluggishly lifted her hand to feel behind her. Seconds later, something stabbed into the back of her neck, eliciting white hot pain that felt like a sting. She let out a raspy cry, lifting her head enough to swat away at the dirt beneath her.

But even that was too much exertion. Deciding she didn't care if she got bitten again, she fell back into the dirt, he heavy eyes being dragged down with her.

* * *

"SES are flying the search helicopters out from Perth. If she's still out there, we'll find her by nightfall Agent," Rob said confidently.

"What if you don't?" Hotch snapped. "We've had people combing the search area for two days and they've found nothing"

"She might have wandered further than we think. It's easy to become disoriented and confused in the heat out there, especially when you have no water-"

Rob was cut off by crackling from the satellite radio. Racing over to it, he picked it up. "You've got Merredin, over"

" _Rob, it's Steve Napier, SES. We found a jacket half buried in the scrub, about 5 kilometres from the crash site, south of the highway. Leather jacket, quite small. Looks like it's been here a couple of days. There's also some blood in the sand, but not a lot"_

"That's what Morgan said she was wearing when she left. The jacket," Hotch said in disbelief. Two days, and they finally had something.

"Steve, that has to belong to Agent Jareau. You have to be close, keep searching and keep us updated," Rob instructed, placing the receiver back down.

Hotch took a deep breath, turning around to look at Morgan, who was staring intently at the map of the search area.

"We're close," he said, breaking Morgan's focus.

"I wish we could go out there and help them," Morgan said softly.

"I know. But the SES are trained to deal with the harsh environment out there, and we still have a case to work on. Speaking of which, Tara and Rossi are within days of cracking it, they've got a profile going. Reid checked in earlier, they're interviewing suspects, he told us to focus on JJ," Hotch replied.

"I just hate the thought of her being out there, in that harsh and lonely environment, thinking we're not looking for her, you know?"

Hotch raised an eyebrow. "It's JJ, Morgan. She'll know we're looking"

* * *

"JJ? What are you doing out here?"

Opening her eyes, JJ found herself looking up into the handsome face of her husband.

"Will," she croaked, her voice barely audible as she shakily reached up towards him.

What was he doing out here? As soon as JJ asked herself that question, she suddenly wondered where here even was. It kind of felt like Arizona. Hot and dusty.

"Save your strength cher," Will said softly, his hand cupping her cheek before he brushed her hair out of her eyes. "We need you to come home"

"Home," JJ mumbled, her eyes drooping as she reached up yet again for Will. "Henry"

"Henry and Michael need their momma. You need to stay strong. They're coming for you," Will breathed. "They're coming for you"

"Morgan," JJ sighed, closing her eyes. The second she had, something twisted in her stomach, and before she could even sit up, a horrible gush of bile came spewing from her mouth. It soaked her shirt, burning her already sunburnt skin. She tried to cry out with the pain, but her throat was so dry that all she managed was a strangled gasp.

"Home," she managed to say through her distress. No tears were coming. She was too dehydrated to cry.

"Home"


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: All I can say for this chapter is YAY!**

* * *

Morgan had finally gotten his way. He was out with the SES volunteers, in the freezing air of the outback night, a flashlight clutched tightly in one hand as he scoured the earth before him.

Constant chatter over the radio reminded him he was not alone. He was starting to understand why the SES had been reluctant to allow him to join them; the Australian Outback was unforgiving for sure.

Up above them, the SES search and rescue helicopter buzzed in loud circles, sweeping the land with the spotlight, searching for any signs that JJ was nearby.

They had got word that earlier during the day, the three remaining members of the team had cracked one of their suspects, and that suspect was now confirmed as one of the ringleaders of the child trafficking ring. All they needed was a final piece of concrete proof, and they would have one leader behind bars and part of the operation shut down. The case would move back to the United States, where local authorities could help round up the remaining divisions.

The grass crunched under his feet as he moved forward towards a cluster of dead trees and prickly bushes. Pushing it aside with his boot, he was about to walk away when he caught sight of something in the edge of the light from the torch.

Blood in the sand. Something that looked suspiciously like stomach contents. And a tiny scrap of fabric, so small he would have missed it had he not originally noticed the blood.

"Guys, I've got blood, vomit, and a scrap of fabric that looks like the shirt JJ was wearing. We have to be close," he said into the radio clipped to his jacket.

Quickening his pace as the others chimed in to say they'd heard his update, he kept his eyes peeled and his torch aloft. They were so close. JJ was somewhere nearby, in the darkness of the night, they just had to find her.

The helicopter swooped overhead, turning to Morgan's right. He watched momentarily as the spotlight landed on a thick area of trees, the only healthy looking vegetation around.

He kept moving, sweeping his torch from left to right as he did. About fifty yards from where he'd found the blood, his radio crackled to life.

" _We can see something! The large patch of trees at the junction between the fields! Near Mussared Road, Agent Morgan, I think you're the closest, head towards the spot!"_

His heart leapt as he grabbed his radio. "On my way!"

He took off at a run towards the spotlight, leaping over a low chicken wire fence and all out sprinting towards the trees. He could hear some of the SES volunteers running around him, their feet pounding into the earth as they all converged towards the cluster of trees.

Skidding across the road, which was nothing more than a dirt track, Morgan hurdled over the ditch at the edge of the road. He could now see what the spotlight had landed on. Something was half concealed beneath a wiry bunch of bushes at the edge of the treeline, and that something looked suspiciously like a person.

"JJ!" he yelled, tripping over his own feet in his haste and coming crashing to a halt inside the spotlight. He never even stopped, only crawled the last few feet to the person crumpled on the ground.

When he rolled them onto their back, he could have cried tears of absolute relief to find that it was JJ's face he was looking into.

"JJ, girl, come on, open your eyes for me," he said in disbelief as he leaned down near her mouth. It was weak and raspy, but he could definitely hear her breathing.

"She's alive!" he yelled as the volunteers finally caught up to him. "JJ, it's Morgan, you're gonna be ok. We found you"

"Napier to Merredin, we've found Agent Jareau alive, but she needs medical attention urgently. We need road transport to Merredin Airfield and an RFDS pickup," Steve said, walking away from the bustle of the group as Morgan pulled his jacket off and wrapped it around JJ's severely sunburnt shoulders.

"Morgan?" came her barely audible voice as he straightened up.

Morgan broke into a smile, brushing her hair off her face. "Hey blondie, we found you. You're gonna be fine, we're gonna get you home"

"Water," JJ croaked, reaching blindly out for something in front of her.

"Here," one of the younger volunteers said, handing Morgan a full water bottle. Morgan immediately slid an arm beneath JJ's shoulders, helping her sit up a little so she could have a drink. She was clearly parched; she gulped down half the bottle before most of them could blink.

Seconds after Morgan took it away from her mouth, everything she had just drank came straight back up, soaking her jeans and splattering onto the ground as a few of the volunteers scrambled back out of the way.

"Better out than in sometimes," Morgan said gently, rubbing her back as she was sick yet again. "We'll get you better, JJ, you're going to be ok"

But seeing how frail she looked after only three days in the outback, Morgan wasn't so sure.

* * *

" _Napier to Merredin, we've found Agent Jareau alive, but she needs medical attention urgently. We need road transport to Merredin Airfield and an RFDS pickup"_

Hotch had never leapt out of a chair faster in his life. JJ was alive. She was alive. He had known she was strong enough to survive, yet every ounce of his being had started convincing him that she had perished in the harsh conditions.

"She's alive!" Garcia shrieked happily, throwing her arms around her boss before leaping back in shock. "Oh my goodness, Hotch, I'm sorry!"

"What's your position?" Rob replied immediately.

" _Outskirts of a farm on Mussared Road, about 3 kilometres from Great Eastern. We're almost 10 kilometres straight line distance from the crash site"_

"What's RFDS?" Hotch asked quietly after Rob had agreed to send a pickup.

"Royal Flying Doctor Service. Your agent is probably in quite a bad way if he's requested them straight away. The RFDS will pick her up from the airfield here and fly her back to Perth for medical treatment," Rob explained.

"Can we meet them at the airfield?" Hotch answered.

Rob nodded.

"Absolutely. I'll take you as soon as I get word they're on their way"

* * *

The light of the ambulance had revealed the deep redness of JJ's skin, and the blisters that had begun to form. Morgan had been taken aback at how bad she looked, yet filled with relief to know she was simply _alive_. They had ascertained on the journey that she was severely dehydrated and her body was starting to shut down. One more day would have most definitely killed her. As well as that, she had a nasty looking infected scorpion bite on the back of her neck, and the obvious signs of a waterborne disease. It had taken some persistence, but the paramedic had managed to get it out of JJ that she had drunk from a small stagnant puddle out of desperation.

They had arrived at the airfield to a waiting aircraft and their colleagues. Hotch and Garcia had immediately rushed over to see their friend the moment the ambulance had come to a stop.

"I'm so glad you're alright," Hotch murmured, leaning down to give JJ a gentle hug. "I'm calling Will as soon as you're in the air, ok?"

JJ nodded, unable to speak due to the parched skin of her throat. She turned slightly, smiling at Garcia who was looking at her with teary eyes.

"I'm gonna come find you, and you better be up and about," she said through a choked voice, giving JJ a one armed hug and kissing her cheek.

"Alright, we need to move. Agent Hotchner, I will have her doctor inform you as soon as she arrives at the hospital," the RFDS officer said as they started taking JJ over to the plane.

Hotch and Garcia could only watch as JJ was loaded into the plane, Morgan climbing in behind her. They knew she was in a bad way, and it wasn't a very good way to end the last few days.

"She's gonna be ok, right?" Garcia asked softly as they watched the plane taxi out to the airstrip.

"She's Jennifer Jareau," Hotch said with a smile. "She's going to be fine"


End file.
